Odds and ends

Ok, so I know this blog thing isn't always that creative. Regurgitating web content takes some time (and sorry for the ones that don't post correctly; sometimes I pre-post weeks in advance in the attempt to have something new post every day) but not always a lot of energy.

So I'm going to give a shot at periodic "things I think are cool/lame/etc" a little closer to my actually experiencing them.

[On that note, can I point you to Twitter? @teameckent, where I actually Tweet a few things about what I've watched or read-- around reTweeting/regurgitating the genius I see there. You don't even need to be on it; just go to the website and search for me.]

Won't promise frequency or length for these blog things, but I'm giving it a try...

TV:

I am so stoked to see what Archer comes up with this season. What does a spy agency that gets shut down by the FBI going to do with itself? Maybe sell that $50 million of drugs it had in storage. Archer Vice-- cannot wait.

I am liking @Midnight quite a bit. I am just flabbergasted by the quick wits that show gets. I'm sure there is some content/bad jokes cut out, but, geez, there are really some great stuff. And Chris Hardwick really is coming in his own as a host.

I'm also really loving The Goldbergs. Great cast that gibes me at least one huge laugh every episode. I love Bert on Trophy Wife. Love him. I think How I Met Your Mother is finally finding some of the greatness it lost a few years ago. Still erratic, but the highs are higher, and the lows aren't as awful.

Agents of S.H.I.E.LD. had a bit of a slow start, but it's really found its legs of late. Gotta give Clark Gregg big props. He has been the father figure and emotional center to this show-- and he's really great at it.  I also love that bits of the mysteries are being revealed and often coming in very unexpected ways. And they are revealed in ways that set-up more-- or give us very interesting reactions by the characters.
Case in point: last week revealed a big part of Skye's backstory. But instead of us seeing how she reacted to it, Coulson related the reaction to May-- and it went a big way to explaining what type of person Skye is. Brilliant scriptwriting there.

I had the Big Deal that happened on Person of Interest in November spoiled to me, so I couldn't bring myself to watch it until last week. Damn... Gut wrenching.  And then they took it to an even darker level the next episode when the ends were being tied up. Using Johnny Cash's rendition of "Hurt" to open the episode while the remaining members of the "team" went on a tear... Didn't think I could hurt more than I did the episode before.

But my favorite show right now is The Neighbors. Completely, absolutely surprising every week. Killer cast that has really found its groove within all the craziness.  And it always lands back on a very human center by the end. Love, friendship, breakups, mid-life crises, new careers... the show really is a lot of fun.


Music:

I really liked Jordis Unga on Rock Star: INXS from a few years back and even watched her on The Voice a couple of years ago (didn't like her songs as much on that show). So when she released a song recently ("Neva Eva") I actually downloaded it (I'm still old school-- would rather have a CD than a file that can disappear). And it's great. Just great. It has a '50s Motown vibe, but still sounds very contemporary.

A woman knows her man has been messing around on her, and she's calling him out. Jordis had a pretty cool idea to change her tone throughout the three minute song that really accentuates her skills. The chorus (she knows her man will say he would "Neva Eva" cheat on her) is sung first as a matter-of-fact statement, then moves to "cute" then has an angry tone. Love it. Give it a try and then download it yourself if you like it. She may have moved to L.A. (I think), but I still consider her a hometown (Twin Cities) girl I can root for.


The Web:

I've been pointed to two great Amazon review pages; one for a crazy-expensive TV and another for a candy that makes one lose bowel control.
I just f-ing love the genius of the average person on the internet...

Samsung 4K HDTV

Haribo Gummy Candy




Well, that'll do for now. I'll try to get to movies and books the next time...

Television Premieres and Notables: January 20-26, 2014

Monday, 1/20

Sleepy Hollow; Fox. 7 pm CST. Season Finale.

Hollywood Game Night; NBC. 7 pm CST. 2nd Season Premiere.

Klondike; Discovery. 8 pm CST. Mini-series Premiere.
Three-part mini about the gold rush.


Wednesday, 1/22

Ghost Hunters; Syfy. 8 pm CST. 10th Season Premiere.

Workaholics; Comedy Central. 9 pm CST. 4th Season Premiere.

Wahlburgers; A&E. 9:30 pm CST. Series Premiere.
The Wahlberg brothers open a restaurant in Boston.

Broad City; Comedy Central. 9:30 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson bring their Web series concept to the small screen.


Thursday, 1/23

Rake; Fox. 8 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Greg Kinnear stars as a sleazy lawyer.

King of the Nerds; TBS. 9 PM CST. 2nd Season Premiere.


Friday, 1/24

Dracula (NBC; 9:01 pm CST). Season Finale.


Saturday, 1/25

Black Sails; Starz. 8 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Pirates!


Sunday, 1/26

Barefoot Contessa; Food Network. 10:30 am CST. 21st Season Premiere.

WTF Happened to Movie Posters

This is pretty great.
If you're like me, you haven't even noticed how shitty movie posters have gotten.

Television Premieres and Notables: January 13-19, 2014

Monday, 1/13

Switched at Birth; ABC Family. 7 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

Lost Girl; Syfy. 7 pm CT. 4th Season Premiere.

Brain Games; National Geographic. 8 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

Being Human (U.S.); Syfy. 8pm CST. 4th Season Premiere.

Archer; FX. 9 pm CST. 5th Season Premiere.
Back to the Danger Zone!

Bitten; Syfy. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.
It's got something to do with werewolves...

Chozen; FX. 9:30 pm CST. Series Premiere.
An aspiring rapper tries to get his life together after being released from prison.


Tuesday, 1/14

Face Off; Syfy. 8 pm CST. 6th Season Premiere.

Kroll Show; Comedy Central. 9:30 pm CST. 2nd Season Premiere.


Wednesday, 1/15

American Idol; Fox. 7 pm CST. 13th Season Premiere.

Suburgatory; ABC. 7:30 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

Men at Work; TBS. 9 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.


Thursday, 1/16

On Community (NBC; 7 pm CST), Justified's Walton Goggins guest stars as Pierce's lawyer.


Saturday, 1/18

HITRECORD on TV; Pivot. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.


Sunday, 1/19

Sherlock; PBS. 9 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

The Following; Fox. 9:30 pm CST. 2nd Season Premiere.

Looking; HBO. 9:30 pm CST. Series Premiere.

Oh My...

Television Premieres and Notables: January 6-12, 2014

Monday, 1/6

The Bachelor; ABC. 7 pm CST. 18th Cycle Premiere.

Antiques Roadshow; PBS. 7 pm CST (check local listings). 18th Season Premiere.

Hostages (CBS; 8 pm CST). Season Finale.

Lab Rats; Disney XD. 8 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

Hotel Impossible; Travel Channel. 9 pm CST. 4th Season Premiere.


Tuesday, 1/7

On Marvel's Agents of SHIELD (ABC; 7 pm CST), Coulson learns a bit about his death and return. Clark Gregg has been killing it in this role on this show. I expect some great work tonight.

Intelligence; CBS. 8 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Josh Holloway stars as secret agent who has some sort of artificial intelligence enhancements.

Killer Women; ABC. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.

Justified; FX. 9 pm CST. 5th Season Premiere.
Dewey Crowe gets a settlement from the government, and his cousin moves in to try to take over.
Oh yeah, the show snagged Michael Rapaport for the cousin role, so it is continuing the tradition of getting some great guest actors.
Rumors are the show will be signing-off after next season, so you just know things should get crazy as they move the pieces in place for a big final season.
If you haven't been watching this show, it's time to catch up...

Being Mary Jane; BET. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Gabrielle Union reprises her role from the TV movie of the same name.

100 Days of Summer; Bravo. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.

Cougartown; TBS. 9 pm CST. 5th Season Premiere.
Hopefully this show can get over its senior slump. It just never seemed to click last season.


Wednesday, 1/8

Psych; USA. 8 pm CST. 8th Season Premiere.

Chicago PD; 9:01 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Odd how Chicago Fire got a surprise renewal last spring-- and now it has a spin-off...


Friday, 1/10

Enlisted; Fox. 8:30 pm CST. Series Premiere.

Banshee; Cinemax. 9 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

Helix; Syfy. 9 pm CST. Series Premiere.
A group of CDC scientists look into disease outbreaks.

Sunday, 1/12

True Detective; HBO. 8 pm CST. Series Premiere.
Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson star as Louisiana cops who are investigating a murder in the first season of this anthology crime show.

Shameless; Showtime. 8 pm CST. 4th Season Premiere.

Girls; HBO. 9 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

House of Lies; Showtime. 9 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.

Episodes; Showtime. 9:30 pm CST. 3rd Season Premiere.
The second season of Episodes was one of the funniest seasons of any show I've ever seen.
I am completely bummed that I have to wait until it hits DVD now that I don't have Showtime...

Can't say I get it-- but I do know it's cool...

Found the rest of the story. Still cool.